The Way I Loved You
by Heaven Is A Book Shop
Summary: AU/One-shot "They're right y'know; Peeta's like… the dream guy, for any girl. He's just so… sensible; and... incredible; and he tells you everything, well everything important anyway; and-" "I guess you could say 'I couldn't ask for anything better?" Katniss blurted. There was one fault with Peeta Mellark, he just wasn't Gale Hawthorne.


**A/N: This is an AU/One-shot**

**Disclaimer: All characters belong to Suzanne Collins**

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"Hey, are you going out with Peeta tonight?" Rue asked eagerly.

"Yeah, just going on a picnic and watching the sunset and stuff…" replied Katniss, her tone was flat from boredom.

"Aww, that's _so_ romantic! You are _so_ lucky to have a guy like _him_." Prim butted in.

The Katniss and Madge had been sat in Katniss' room, Prim and Rue had concluded the pair weren't doing anything useful in there (because when you're twelve, big sisters and their friend are _never_ doing _anything_ useful) when they had burst through the door with Buttercup hot on their tails.

Madge gave Katniss a sympathetic look.

"They're right y'know; Peeta's like… the dream guy, for _any_ girl. He's just so… sensible; and... incredible; and he tells you everything, well everything important anyway; and-"

"I guess you could say '_I couldn't ask for anything better'_?" Katniss blurted, boys were never a safe subject for Katniss Everdeen, well… not until recently, that is.

Peeta Mellark was flawless, with his cute smile, soft blonde hair and gentle blue eyes he was, as Madge had stated: the dream guy, for _any_ girl. He didn't keep secrets (except when it came to birthday presents or surprise parties); never got into fights; was the perfect gentleman and worshipped the ground on which his girl walked. But Katniss seemed to be the only girl to see the one fault with Peeta Mellark, he just wasn't Gale Hawthorne.

Gale Hawthorne was, probably, every girl's worst nightmare. Sure, he was hot, there were no two ways around it - slate grey eyes, black shiny hair and treacherously tanned skin, - yes, Gale Hawthorne was hot. But, he kept secrets; he _never_ brought his girl a birthday present; he drunk; he played; he gambled; he even worked at the Hob, the Seam's most notorious bar; and as for the fights…

"Katniss, Peeta's here!"

The brunette's rambling thoughts were cut off by her mother's voice drifting up the staircase. The four girls looked at each other; he was on time in Peeta's typical style (something Gale would never be). Katniss grabbed whatever item of clothing Madge was dangling in front of her face and made a dash for the bathroom.

Five minutes later, Katniss was out of the house heading towards Peeta's much beloved convertible; Gale hadn't even owned a car, then again Gale wouldn't even pick you up for a date.

Peeta opened up her door and a she slid onto the seat, just as he whispered in her ear, "You look beautiful tonight."

Katniss had the sudden thought to actually look at what Madge had chosen for her and was surprised to see her mother's hand-me-down plain blue cotton dress, which Katniss had still believed was left behind at the old house in the Seam.

The Everdeen's had moved from the vast, dirty, city of Seam just weeks after Katniss had called things off with Gale and, in turn, torn her heart to shreds. It was the small village of Victory that Katniss had first met Peeta, literally the boy next door. If Katniss was honest with herself – and she always tried to be – Peeta wasn't really her type, but he was a friend and he listened, two things Gale always tried but failed at.

Katniss was broken from her daydream by the car engine cutting and Peeta, being the perfect gentleman as usual, and opening her door.

As Katniss looked around she froze…

The valley was beautiful – no, breath-taking. Miles and miles of lush, green, forest stretched across the plain until they met the bottom of the soaring, snow-capped mountains, all under the most striking sunset. In her heart, Katniss knew that nestled in those mountains was the slum city of Seam, and although she was happy and content in Victory, there was a place in her soul that it would never fill.

The surroundings had just one fault, this was the exact place Gale and Katniss would spend _their_ evenings together, often out until 2am doing nothing more than screaming, fighting and kissing in the rain. They were insane, they were in love, and they were cursing each other's names until the early hours.

If Katniss was another girl she would say that evening was perfect, but Katniss wasn't another girl, so she settled for satisfactory.

Just like every other date, at the end of the evening, Peeta promised, "I'll call you tomorrow, I promise."

And of course, he would because he was Peeta Mellark, and Peeta Mellark _always_ kept his promises. He had also _never_ made a girl cry and he was _always_ on time, but that was Peeta Mellark for you.

And just like every other date with Peeta, it ended with a peck on the cheek in the Everdeen's front garden and talking business with Katniss' father, pleasantries with her mother, and Prim just gawking.

Of course, it had never been like this with Gale, who was sensible enough to know he shouldn't take Katniss home, unless he was asking for a fight with Mr Everdeen (something even Gale had tried to avoid). Part of Gale's appeal had been that he would be a perfect way to rebel against Mr and Mrs Everdeen, who were determined to treat Katniss as if she were still a child. It was the perfect plan, Gale was hot, her parents wouldn't stand for it and Katniss wouldn't fall in love, she couldn't.

But that was the fatal flaw; Katniss Everdeen's plans to never fall in love had broken down and come undone and exploded within the blink of an eye. Little had Katniss expected to fall as she had in rush that had swept her off her feet and little had she expected to feel so heartbroken.

Long after Peeta had gone and the lights in the Everdeen's house had slowly burned out, Katniss was still awake. This was strange, considering how tired she was of faking laughs and smile; however the fatigue the young Everdeen girl felt was not physical but more emotional.

Sure, Peeta was sweet and funny but he was safe as houses. That wasn't to say Gale hadn't been as safe as houses, he had… it was just that those houses were on fire.

And Katniss had escaped, escaped the fire, but not the burns. She couldn't blame Gale, she was the one who had broken things off, but there was still that Gale-shaped-whole inside her heart that just couldn't be filled, not even by Peeta Mellark.

Peeta Mellark who would never break a girl's heart and he still hadn't, Katniss' heart wasn't breaking because she wasn't not feeling anything at all.

Katniss imagined herself a year ago, lying in a different bed, in a different town. She imagined a girl insane with love for a boy, who was insane with love for his girl; a girl who never knew she could feel that much; a girl who spent her nights thinking of him while cursing and swearing and still loving, always loving. Loving the secrets; loving the fact he didn't care; loving the Hob; loving the roller coaster rush; loving the part where she never knew she could feel that much; and as for the fights… That's just the way she loved him…

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**Review, please.**


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